Early morning on Sunday, May 20th Portland
Mountain Rescue was asked to assist with a climber with a possible broken ankle
who was at around 9600 ft, on the South Side route of Mt Hood.One
PMR member already on the mountain rendezvoused with a group of climbers that
were assisting in splinting the injured ankle and they were able to quickly
evacuate the climber to the top of the Palmer where a snow cat could reach
them.Because there were enough resources already on the mountain helping with the injured climber, additional PMR teams
were kept on stand-by.Around 9:30
am the injured climber was successfully evacuated off the mountain without
further need of PMR involvement.

Lower-leg
injuries such as this are fairly common in mountaineering because crampons worn
on climbers’ boots can catch on ice or loose clothing.In this case, the evacuation went quickly and smoothly because members of the injured climber’s party, as well as
other climbers nearby, had the necessary equipment and expertise to render
first-aid and protection from the weather.